I feel the same way you do. Although I don't eat meat, DH and DS do, and DS eats a lot of meat. I've read both "Omnivore's Dilemma" and "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle," and actually considered going back to eating meat IF I bought it from local farmers that raised pasture raised chickens and beef. It's not only much more expensive, but in my particular case, very inconvenient, since I work during the time the producers are at the farmers market.

As for stretching your meat, I imagine there are several thrifty recipes that involve using small portions of meat mixed in with other things, almost as flavorings rather than the star, such as stir fry dishes, casseroles, soups, etc. I'm sure other people more accustomed to cooking meat can give you actual recipes. Good luck with your endeavor - I applaud you.

Sally

The Frugal Gourmet used to talk a lot about using good quality ingredients "frugally" Some of the time that was using beef, for example, as an ingredient, not as the whole enchilada (pun intended).

Our Trader Joe's carries grass fed beef (not kosher?)

Denise - which TJs?!? I've been looking for grass fed.

Redondo!

I don't know if it's feasible, but you might try buying beef in bulk, instead of by the package, if you have a place to put a small freezer.

We sell our grassfed beef by halves, $1.65 a pound hanging weight. Half a beef weighs about 500 lbs because we butcher at 18 months to keep that lean beef tender without the fat content. Somewhere between 30 and 40 percent of that hanging weight is waste, including skin, hooves, etc, so the final weight tally for a half is about 300-350 lbs. If you figure the high side, that's $825.00 for the beef, and you get 350 lbs. That's $2.36 a pound, plus 39 cents a pound for packaging (that cost could vary) which brings your cost up to $2.75 a pound. Of course, you con't get to choose just certain cuts, you'd get everything from round to brisket to porterhouse to ground beef, but it would all cost you $2.75 a pound.

Prices may vary depending on the farmer and the area, of course. Since I only have enough acreage in pasture to support 10-12 animals, and 2 of those are horses, 4 are breeding cows and one is a bull, I only have room for 3-5 additional animals for beef. If one is mine and one is Dad's and one is my sister's, we only have one or two to sell, depending on the breeding age of the cow. Because of that, I sell "low", but it gives Dad a little extra income.

Annie

I was going to suggest just as Annie.. Buying in bulk..I'm saving my pennies to do so.

I'll second Annie's suggestion (just bought my "half of a half" for $2.00 on the hanging weight, cut/wrap included).
Even "worst case" scenario...if we lost 50% in the cutting, it's still only $4.00/lb.

Another option, if you don't want to buy that much is to find a meat locker/cutter with a retail market and buy a beef box. Something like 25# at a time. Should still be cheaper than the grocery store and they (usually) know where the meat came from.

Deanna

Right now I'm buying directly from the kosher butcher. I could do some investigation to see if I can buy directly from his supplier. There are so many kosher laws, and people that need to "oversee" the process, that it's a little hard. The kosher butcher closer to our home doesn't carry grass fed, but the owner is a friend of DH's from high school, so I'm going to have him put in a special request. Maybe.... At least that way I won't have to pay $25 in shipping.

AM
The Dinner Chronicles

With the amout of hormones and antibiotics in regular beef I only buy grassfed by the box. These boxes are about 45 lbs. These boxes can be stored in a freezer for up to a year without a problem. You can split a box between 2 families. I recommend buying grass fed from Nicaragua because the price is very reasonable. This country has over 500 years of producing only grass fed beef. It is available in the US through NBI International and they bring it from a USDA certified plant.